Commissioners weigh private-school buffer and outdoor-facility permit requirements

Ms. Stallings, planning staff, presented revisions to Article 7 aimed at closing ordinance gaps for private and parochial schools. She said staff proposed two principal changes: require a 30-foot perimeter buffer on private schools (matching religious institutions) and require a special-use permit for outdoor recreational facilities (excluding playgrounds). "We would recommend adding this section, which requires a 30 foot perimeter buffer on a private school unless there's a greater buffer required by Article 10," Ms. Stallings said.

Commissioners raised several practical concerns. Commissioner Cohen asked whether indoor facilities such as gymnasiums would be captured and urged the board to consider including indoor athletic facilities because of similar intensity and neighborhood impacts. "I think it needs to be included in that because you've got the potential to have the same issues with a large building going right on in that same property," Commissioner Cohen said. Other commissioners discussed whether the provision should apply to all private schools or only facilities with outdoor athletic uses, and whether the noise ordinance should be explicitly cited to control hours and loudspeakers.

Ms. Stallings said the draft was not written to require a special-use permit for every private school immediately and that broader changes could be considered as part of a unified development code update. Commissioners generally signaled willingness to hold the public hearing and to consider interim measures now with the option of revising language during the larger code rewrite.